Ciara Renée, McKenzie Kurtz & Ryan McCartan debut in Disney's Frozen

Renée, Kurtz & McCartan assume the roles of Elsa, Anna & Hans, respectively, in Disney Theatrical's hit Broadway musical at the St. James Theatre.

"For the First Time in Forever" the hit Disney musical Frozen welcomes new principal members to the Broadway company tonight.

Ciara Renée assumes the role of Elsa, taking over from original cast member Caissie Levy. Renée recently starred Off-Broadway as Mariana in MCC Theater's world premiere musical The Wrong Man. Her previous Broadway credits include the roles of The Witch in Big Fish in 2013 and The Leading Player in Pippin in 2014. She also originated the role of Esmeralda in The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the Paper Mill Playhouse and has starred as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar at The Muny. Away from the stage, TV and comic book fans will likely recognize her as Kendra Saunders (aka Hawkgirl) in DC's "Legends of Tomorrow," "The Flash," and "Arrow" on The CW.

McKenzie Kurtz makes her Broadway debut tonight, when she assumes the role of Anna from original cast member Patti Murin. Her previous stage credits include Footloose at The Muny and Female Troubles in Williamstown.

Finally, taking over the role of Prince Hans from former cast member Joe Carroll is Ryan McCartan, who has previously starred as Fiyero in the Broadway production of Wicked. Off-Broadway, he also originated the roles of Mac in Roundabout Theatre Company's recent world premiere musical Scotland, PA and JD in Heathers: The Musical. He is perhaps best known for his TV roles as Brad Majors in Fox's "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and as Diggie on "Liv & Maddie" for The Disney Channel.

Caissie Levy, Patti Murin and Joe Carroll all played their final performances on February 16, 2020.

Check out these new production shots of the new Broadway cast members...

In addition, Ryann Redmond has now returned from her medical leave to reprise the role of Olaf, with Chad Burris now departing the production to join the Broadway company of Mean Girls.

The principal cast of Frozen currently includes Ciara Renée (as Elsa), McKenzie Kurtz (as Anna), Noah J. Ricketts​ (as Kristoff), Ryann Redmond (as Olaf), Ryan McCartan (as Hans), Robert Creighton (as Duke of Weselton), Kevin Del Aguila (as Oaken), Donald Jones, Jr. (as Pabbie), Andrew Pirozzi and Adam Jepsen (alternating as Sven), Fiona Morgan Quinn and Charlie Tassone (alternating as Young Anna), and Anna Rae Haller and Suri Marrero (alternating as Young Elsa).

Disney's Frozen began previews at the St. James Theatre on February 22, 2018, and officially opened on March 22.

Based on the Academy Award-winning animated classic, Frozen features a book by the film's writer and co-director Jennifer Lee, along with music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, who also penned the film's soundtrack.

Synopsis: "Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale The Snow Queen, the musical tells the story of fearless princess Anna who sets off on an epic journey alongside a rugged iceman, his loyal pet reindeer, and a naïve snowman to find her estranged sister Elsa, whose icy powers have inadvertently trapped the kingdom in eternal winter."

Under the direction of Tony Award winner Michael Grandage, the creative team features choreography by Tony Award winner Rob Ashford, scenic and costume design by two-time Tony Award winner Christopher Oram, lighting design by five-time Tony Award winner Natasha Katz, sound design by four-time Tony Award nominee Peter Hylenski, music supervision and vocal & incidental arrangements by two-time Tony Award winner Stephen Oremus, orchestrations by Dave Metzger, music consultation by Chris Montan, music direction by Brian Usifer, video design by Tony Award winner Finn Ross, puppet design by Michael Curry, hair design by David Brian Brown, make-up design by Anne Ford-Coates and special effects design by Jeremy Chernick.

The 2013 animated film picked up two Academy Awards at the 2014 ceremony: 'Best Animated Feature Film' and 'Best Original Song' (for "Let It Go").

The musical also features such popular songs as "For the First Time in Forever," "Love Is an Open Door," and "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?," among others.

Disney's Frozen Tickets are available now for performances through August 9, 2020.

^{(Ciara Renée & McKenzie Kurtz header photos by dirty sugar / Production photos by Mary Ellen Matthews)}